Food historian and celebrated chef Joyce Goldstein shares why
spring is her favorite season and the importance of building family
traditions centered on food with FoodFit Executive Chef Bonnie
Moore.

How do you shop for food?

JOYCE GOLDSTEIN:

Let the market
talk to you. If you're planning on making broccoli but it looks
lousy and the carrots look good, get the carrots. Don't be so rigid
that you cook bad broccoli instead of good carrots.

What staples make life easier?

JOYCE
GOLDSTEIN:

Every
pantry should probably have pasta, rice, canned tomatoes, olives
 basic things that you could throw together for say a tomato and
olive and anchovy pasta. I always have pasta and rice and cheese
and good olive oil and vinegar and wine and bread in my house, so
I can feed people.

What restaurant tips are helpful at home?

JOYCE GOLDSTEIN:

Lay out your
ingredients, make sure you've got the right pot and pan for it,
and the time. A dish that takes two hours when you have 20 minutes
is not going to work. Home cooking is good cooking, and people should
value that. I want people to eat at home. I don't want them to eat
out every meal, and I want it to be easy for them to do and I want
them to get kisses after they've served it because people say it's
delicious.

Do you have a favorite season for cooking?

JOYCE GOLDSTEIN:

I love cooking
in the spring with asparagus, peas and artichokes. It's exciting
because we've just had root vegetables and big, hearty stuff all
winter. So spring is this lightness, which I think is wonderful.

Do you have a favorite vegetable?

JOYCE GOLDSTEIN:

It's a toss-up
between artichokes, asparagus, and spinach, which I could just eat
365 days a year.

What vegetables are popular with kids?

JOYCE GOLDSTEIN:

Asparagus
is fun for kids to eat because they can hold it with their hands
and it goes well with so many sauces.

Talk about families, food and tradition.

JOYCE GOLDSTEIN:

I think these
are the things that are important. Food has a very powerful sense
of memory for people, and we need to keep that alive. The year before
last, I made black raspberry ice cream for the family, and the grandkids
loved it. This year, they said to me, "Grandma, are we going to
make that purple ice cream?"  so I had to go and track down
black raspberries. I hope they ask me every year to make the purple
ice cream because that's something now that's a little tradition
that we do in the summer.

Do you cook with your grandchildren?

JOYCE GOLDSTEIN:

They're still
a little young to handle knives and stuff. They mostly have opinions
about food and taste and do some licking and stirring. When they're
eight or nine and have more manual dexterity, they'll be able
to do a lot more. I'm looking forward to it.